TORMENTED Synonyms: 156 Similar and Opposite Words

tormented 1 of 2

adjective

as in tortured

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tormented

2 of 2

verb

past tense of torment

as in plagued

to cause persistent suffering to he was tormented by nightmares about the accident

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Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of tormented

Verb

The Eagles, of course, have tormented the league with that play. — Barry Jackson, Miami Herald, 25 Sep. 2026 The series follows a group of Los Angeles teenagers in the 1980s who are being tormented by a serial killer known as the Trawler. — Catherine Santino, PEOPLE, 18 Sep. 2026 Parents of children murdered at Sandy Hook in 2012 were tormented for years by conspiracy theorists who claimed their kids hadn’t really died. — Elle Reeve, CNN Money, 8 Sep. 2026 About a month after that, the financier, tormented by fears of further investigation, died of apoplexy. — Business Columnist, Los Angeles Times, 7 Sep. 2026 Leite is one week removed from giving Angel Reese and Howard fits in Atlanta, while Astier has tormented the Fever duo of Clark and Aliyah Boston. — Sabreena Merchant, New York Times, 4 Sep. 2026 Saeed and Nadia live in an unnamed country tormented by civil war—and meanwhile, there are rumors of mysterious doors, portals that lead to other places. — Chloe Benjamain, Literary Hub, 4 Sep. 2026 Nosferatu In 2024 Depp appeared in Robert Eggers’s Nosferatu as Ellen Hutter, a young woman tormented and nearly possessed by the film’s titular vampire. — Encyclopedia Britannica, 2 Sep. 2026 To this day, Mischelle Lawless' family remains tormented by the mystery of her senseless murder. — Peter Henderson, CBS News, 26 Aug. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for tormented

Adjective

Earlier works tinging with an obscure kind of darkness that hinted at tortured psychological states have all but disappeared from her work and living quarters in lieu of an elegant old world charm.

— Francesca Aton, ARTnews.com, 29 Sep. 2026
But this leads to secrets revealed, lies told and tortured confrontations, not just with others but most intensely with himself.

— Pete Hammond, Deadline, 4 Sep. 2026

Definition of tortured

Verb

Fashion’s relationship with art is a conundrum that’s plagued the minds of some of its greatest auteurs.

— José Criales-Unzueta, Vanity Fair, 3 Oct. 2026
Taking the Long Way was never going to be country enough for some, but that was something the Chicks were always plagued with, even in their early busking days on the streets of Dallas.

— Marissa R. Moss, Rolling Stone, 2 Oct. 2026

Definition of plagued

Adjective

Livia’s sister-in-law invokes the poem when Livia learns, to her surprise, that her manipulative, abusive mother had been a frustrated musician.

— Sam Worley, Vulture, 5 Oct. 2026
They were thoroughly dominated by Chicago in a 23-12 loss on Sunday, a performance that left fans increasingly frustrated and the Jets insisting the franchise's past failures weren't seeping into the locker room.

— ABC News, ABC News, 5 Oct. 2026

Definition of frustrated

Verb

Those governments provide assurances that people won’t be persecuted or tortured, federal attorneys said.

— Lindsay Whitehurst, Los Angeles Times, 29 Sep. 2026
Also, some immigration cases involve people seeking asylum because they are being persecuted by a foreign government and releasing a person’s full name could be considered sensitive or even dangerous.

— Laura Tillman, Hartford Courant, 11 Sep. 2026

Definition of persecuted

Adjective

Others were placed under house arrest, harassed or subject to extensive surveillance, or had their passports confiscated, according to prior NPR reporting and the findings of the United Nations and rights groups.

— Emily Feng, NPR, 17 May 2026
For years, Christian clergy who live and work in Jerusalem have reported being frequently spat on, harassed and even physically attacked by Israeli extremists.

— Yuliya Talmazan, NBC news, 1 May 2026

Definition of harassed

Verb

While the epicenter was located in Nantou County in central Taiwan, serious damage afflicted residents across the island as roads buckled, bridges collapsed and landslides destroyed everything in their path.

— Desiree Anello, PEOPLE, 21 Sep. 2026
Here’s my Sunday postgame piece on a miserable condition that has afflicted Dolphins fans for years, and our plea to Jon-Eric Sullivan to fix it.

— Barry Jackson, Miami Herald, 20 Sep. 2026

Definition of afflicted

Adjective

Merritt Wever does typically excellent work as a harried producer and malfunctioning moral compass on To Catch a Predator.

— Joe Reid, Vulture, 25 Sep. 2026
Indeed, the footage of the harried production staff trying to keep the show going on from the office at Bray Studios where the shoot is happening sometimes plays like a vintage workplace comedy but with a dark undertow.

— Leslie Felperin, HollywoodReporter, 5 Sep. 2026

Definition of harried

Verb

The settlers who carried out the attack in Jalud overnight are the same group who besieged the home of a Palestinian-American in the neighboring village of Qusra last month, local residents say.

— Zeena Saifi, CNN Money, 29 Sep. 2026
There has been a spate of Israeli settler violence in the West Bank, and the village of Qusra has been besieged by Israeli settlers for weeks.

— F. Brinley Bruton, NBC news, 29 Aug. 2026

Definition of besieged

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“Tormented.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tormented. Accessed 7 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of tormented

adjective

verb

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